English

forbeat

Forbeat comes from Middle English forbeten ‘to beat, beat up’.

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed

Lineage

Formed from for- + beat

Proto-Indo-European *pro- ‘before, in front of’

Proto-Germanic *fra- ‘off, away’

Proto-West Germanic *fra- ‘forms verbs with the sense of "away from" or…’

English for-

Proto-Germanic *bautaną ‘to push’

Proto-West Germanic *bautan ‘to beat’

Old English bēatan ‘to beat’

Middle English beten ‘to hit or whip’

English beat

Every English word from Middle English forbeten

verb To beat.

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.